Energy-Irrigation Nexus in South Asia: Improving Groundwater Conservation and Power Sector Viability

Abstract

"The report suggests that the inability to manage groundwater and energy economies as a nexus is a great opportunity missed in moving towards sustainable groundwater management. In South Asia, there seems to be no practical means for the direct management of groundwater. Laws are unlikely to check the chaotic race to extract groundwater because of the logistical problems of regulating a large number of small, dispersed users. Water pricing and property-right reforms also will not work for the same reasons. Appropriate policies for the supply and pricing of power offer a powerful toolkit for the indirect management of both groundwater and energy use."